Central African Republic: Emergency evacuation from a crucible of violence

This woman and girl in Bangui are among the more than 900,000 people displaced by violence in Central African Republic.

BANGUI, Central African Republic, January 24 (UNHCR) – Earlier this week, Amina* thought she was going to die, trapped in a transit centre that was surrounded by armed men who had shot her in the leg and killed her friends.

She was among a group of 58 people who had sought help at the centre in Bossambele, some 170 kilometres northwest of the Central African Republic capital, Bangui, after her home town came under attack by armed groups and thugs. They threw a grenade at a mosque, killing 11 people who had sought shelter there. Then the assailants started looking for other people to kill.

Despite suffering a bullet wound in the leg, Amina eventually sought sanctuary in the transit centre. Only the presence of the French soldiers and the intervention of a local pastor kept the assailants out of the transit centre.

Abdoulaye,* the imam of the mosque, was also hiding in the centre and fearing the worst, despite the presence of the French. "The only way to survive is to leave the north-west," he told UNHCR hours after his ordeal ended. "We were faced with a situation of no choices – only death."

UNHCR and its humanitarian partners shared the deadly concerns of Amina and and Abdoulaye, in a country where violence over the past year has left more than 900,000 internally displaced people. The roots of the inter-communal conflict are complicated and, in recent weeks, the situation has been exacerbated by individual and mob violence as well as banditry.

On Wednesday, fearing an imminent threat to the safety of the internally displaced people in Bossambele, UNHCR and other humanitarian actors organized a voluntary evacuation operation to a safer place for the 58 people in the transit centre. Under French military escort, Amina, Abdoulaye and the others were taken with their luggage by truck to a mosque in Bangui.

Their situation in Bossambele and the operation to evacuate them, highlights some of the difficulties facing those trying to provide protection for groups of displaced. "We are facing a complex protection of civilians challenge that has essentially involved the need for individual protection of groups of displaced, who are under direct threat from armed groups, but also from individual and mob violence," said Tammi Sharpe, UNHCR's deputy representative in Bangui.

In the relative safety of Bangui, a malnourished and dehydrated Amina spoke with difficulty of her ordeal, while stressing that the evacuation had "saved me and my family's life." Sitting in a room normally used for Koran classes and clearly in pain, she explained that she had been wounded during the mosque attack in Bossambele and the bullet was still lodged in her leg. She added that "those butchers" had hunted for her before she reached the safe transit house, accusing her of being a member of the Seleka, a predominantly Muslim former rebel alliance that captured Bangui in March last year.

Like other members of the group, most of whom looked traumatized, she praised the local Christian pastor who had helped protect the displaced group and arrange safe passage out of the town. UNHCR has come across significant numbers of people who have helped friends of different religions.

"I have spent every single one of my 60 years of life in the Central African Republic, and had never ever experienced any problems because of my religion," noted Imam Abdoulaye. He added that after fleeing the mosque in Bossambele, he and a farmer companion had managed to reach the transit centre thanks to "Christian friends," who hid them on their small farms.

But his optimism has taken a severe battering in the past few weeks. Since early December, three of his six children have been killed and Abdoulaye said he believed that they were targeted because he was the imam of the mosque. He had retained hope that a corner would be turned with new political developments, but the deaths of his sons and the attack on Bossambele had dented his morale.

UNHCR and the humanitarian community also remain deeply concerned. "Inter-communal violence has reached dangerous levels and, as this episode reveals, the long-term safety of these people relies on countering impunity for acts of violence and tackling the roots of this growing hatred while finding means to promote peaceful co-existence," said Volker Türk, UNHCR's Geneva-based director of international protection.

Meanwhile, in Bangui, Abdoulaye and the other displaced people, including Amina, were interviewed by UNHCR staff, medically screened and given aid items and food, as well as a place to stay in the mosque complex. But, in a city with more than 450,000 internally displaced, their future looks uncertain.

UNHCR country pages

Edwige Deals With Loss by Keeping Busy and Aiding Others in Mole Camp

Edwige Kpomako is a woman in a hurry; but her energy also helps the refugee from Central African Republic (CAR) to cope with the tragedy that forced her to flee to northern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) last year. Before violence returned to her country in 2012, the 25-year-old was studying for a Masters in American literature in Bangui, and looking forward to the future. "I started my thesis on the works of Arthur Miller, but because of the situation in CAR . . . ," she said, her voice trailing off. Instead, she had to rush to the DRC with a younger brother, but her fiancée and 10-year old son were killed in the inter-communal violence in CAR.

After crossing the Oubangui River to the DRC, Edwige was transferred to Mole, a camp housing more than 13,000 refugees. In a bid to move on with her life and keep busy, she started to help others, assume a leadership role and take part in communal activities, including the Brazilian martial art of capoeira. She heads the women's committee, is engaged in efforts to combat sexual violence, and acts as a liaison officer at the health centre. She also teaches and runs a small business selling face creams. "I discovered that I'm not weak," said Edwige, who remains optimistic. She is sure that her country will come out of its nightmare and rebuild, and that she will one day become a human rights lawyer helping refugees.

American photojournalist Brian Sokol took these photos.

Edwige Deals With Loss by Keeping Busy and Aiding Others in Mole Camp

New refugees from Central African Republic struggle with ration cuts in southern Chad

Since January 2014, a funding shortfall has forced the World Food Programme (WFP) to cut food rations by 60 per cent in refugee camps in southern Chad. The reduction comes as thousands of refugees from Central African Republic (CAR) continue to arrive in the south - more than 14,000 of them since the beginning of 2014. Many arrive sick, malnourished and exhausted after walking for months in the bush with little food or water. They join some 90,000 other CAR refugees already in the south - some of them for years.

The earlier refugees have been able to gain some degree of self-reliance through agriculture or employment, thus making up for some of the food cuts. But the new arrivals, fleeing the latest round of violence in their homeland, are facing a much harsher reality. And many of them - particularly children - will struggle to survive because WFP has also been forced cut the supplemental feeding programmes used to treat people trying to recover from malnutrition.

WFP needs to raise US$ 186 million to maintain feeding programmes for refugees in Africa through the end of the year. Additionally, UNHCR is urgently seeking contributions towards the US$ 78 million it has budgeted this year for food security and nutrition programmes serving refugees in Africa.

Photojournalist Corentin Fohlen and UNHCR Public Information Officer Céline Schmitt visited CAR refugees in southern Chad to document their plight and how they're trying to cope.

New refugees from Central African Republic struggle with ration cuts in southern Chad

A Central African Refugee's Reunion With Her Sons Brings Joy and Sorrow

The violence and conflict in the Central African Republic has forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes since mid-December. Many have sought refuge in neighbouring countries, including 80,000 in Cameroon. During the trauma and confusion of flight, families often become separated. They face many dangers on the way to safety, and their journey can take many weeks. Ramatou, a 45-year-old mother of 11 children, was separated from three of her sons and her husband when militiamen attacked her village in January. She ran in one direction with eight children and eventually made it to Cameroon with the help of African Union peace-keepers. Her husband and three sons ran in a different direction and endured many ordeals in the bush, becoming separated again. Earlier this month, Ramatou was reunited in Cameroon's Mbile Refugee Camp with the two youngest boys. She was overjoyed, but dismayed that they were on their own. She still hopes for her husband and eldest son to turn up. Photographer Fred Noy was there at the emotional reunion.

A Central African Refugee's Reunion With Her Sons Brings Joy and Sorrow

The Central African Republic Crisis: Hardship and Resilience

As the conflict drags on in CAR, the UN refugee agency and its partners appeal for more support to help over 425,000 refugees in four neighbouring countries.

Joint Appeal: Help Needed for Central African Refugees

The UN refugee agency and its partners appealed for more donor support to cope with the continuing outflow and deteriorating condition of refugees from the Central African Republic.

UNHCR's Dr. Paul Spiegel on the Border of CAR and Cameroon

This video was shot by one of our staff* using a mobile phone as they helped refugees who had crossed the river to safety.